A History of Reading

Reading is so ingrained in us, and has become such a part of the landscape of our lives, that we often don't realize that reading has developed and evolved over time. We look at our own history of reading, and it seems to follow the same basic steps as our peers. As young children, someone shows us books, and reads to us, and we slowly begin to recognize letters and words on our own. It's hard to conceive of a time when the written word didn't exist, or when it wasn't readily accessible to all. I think Manguel does an excellent job, at least so far, of showing how reading has evolved, and how different things in different eras were important. Reading aloud, like in Augustine's time is now limited mostly to the young. Augustine and his contemporaries viewed reading silently as the anomaly. Memorization of texts also played an important role at one time, either in an effort to learn or in an attempt not to have the text taken from you. In my own life, I find that memorization actually impedes my reading process, as I concentrate on the actual words rather than what the words say.

I think my favorite part of the text is actually the quote by Kafka. "I think we ought to read only books that bite and sting us. ... A book must be the axe for the frozen sea within us.". Kafka seems to have focused on the idea that reading should connect to the reader. He left works unfinished ("The Castle") so that the reader will never stop the story. This is a perfect way to illustrate the idea that books are... alive, for lack of a better description. When reading, I so often insert my own ideas and experiences, and connect with characters with whom I would never think I had anything in common. I remember books not so much for the literal words of the text, but for the feelings they invoked in me.

Introductory Post

My name is Laura Farmer (well, Peterson really, but for the sake of not confusing the grading system, we'll pretend like KSU didn't enroll me under my maiden name). I started off as an English major when I started at Berry College in 2003. Throughout the years, I have switched majors several times, managing somehow to earn an Associate's degree in Sociology. However, I have once again decided on English. I suppose that's just proof that sometimes you need to go with your gut.

I have been married for three and a half years. I took spring semester off of school to have my daughter, Eliza, who is now five and a half months old. My husband and I live in Rome, and so I somehow managed to arrange it to where I only have to come to campus two days a week. We have two cats, Gus and Little Cat (our imaginations know no bounds), and two dogs, Abbey and Eleanor. Clearly, my house is destined to resemble the main tent of a three ring circus. It's pretty awesome, most days. I tend to communicate in non-academic settings with a lot of sarcasm, so if you ever think I'm being mean, don't take me seriously. I'm really shy, and the attempt at humor helps me feel a little bit more comfortable with myself.